Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Down Comes the Night

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft

7 reviews

edamamebean's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Definitely not my favorite Allison Saft, but still very enjoyable. I liked the gothic vibes, even though the mystery ended up being kind of predictable. I also really liked the overarching message that empathy and emotion isn’t weakness, and that your identity is made up of more than just your work. The romance was hard to root for at first because GIRL, THAT IS A WHOLE ASS WAR CRIMINAL!! PUT HIM DOWN YOU DON’T KNOW WHERE HE’S BEEN!!! But ultimately Hal Cavendish did win me over…not so sure I like what that says about me.

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mimmixoxo's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

4.25

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theonlybaillie's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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hmbrokaw's review

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adventurous funny fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

TBH would have been more enjoyable from Hal’s perspective

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sarahamuller1's review

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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girlonbooks's review

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

🌨️🌨️🌨️🌨️ Four Stars (as rated in the snow clouds in this splendidly wintery read)

Niece to the queen herself, Wren Southerland might as well be a nobody. Sequestered in the Abbey from a very young age, Wren fought to establish her worth with her exceptional (and magical) healing abilities. Having worked her way up to Lieutenant in the Queen’s army, all Wren wants in the whole world is to be recognized for her value; to be told she matters. But when one moment of misplaced compassion leaves her at the mercy of an enemy spy – compromising her entire mission – Wren risks losing everything she’s spent years worked for. Getting back in the Queen’s good graces will require a bigger gamble than she’s ever taken before, and necessitate allying herself with the very enemy she’s sworn to defeat.

“Maybe the only difference between a monster and a hero was the colour of a soldier’s uniform”

This book really grew on me. I loved the narration from the start (Kathleen McInerney deserves her own genre of the word talented) but I took a minute to connect with the story. Once things get going, though, and the mystery “intensifies,” so to speak, I was officially in it for the long haul. Just something to keep in mind if you’re on the fence about DNFing within the first 50 pages.

✨ Read this book because: you want a cozy winter read with some mystery, the tiniest bit of sexual tension and a lot of politically motivated backstabbing.

✨ Content warnings for this book: descriptive medical stuff, graphic medical trauma, gore, blood, death, death of a parent, murder, poisoning, body horror, war, violence

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literarycherub's review

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emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This post was delayed a day, but I just had to listen to the audiobook! I am happy to say, it was magnificent. It was just as atmospheric as I had hoped and I adored all the accents. I actually read a physical review copy as well which I won from the author’s giveaway! I am extremely grateful for that because I was anticipating this book for months!

I first heard about Down Comes the Night from my lovely friend Cossette and ever since I was itching to get my hands on it. She knows I am obsessed with gothic literature and fantasy novels. Once it arrived, I just stared at it for a long while because the cover is so beautiful. As I started to flip through, I saw the dedication and instantly I knew I would fall in love.

For all the girls who feel too much.

Down Comes the Night was atmospheric, emotional, and romantic. We are quickly introduced to Wren who is seen as being weak for her empathetic ways. She is always trying to do the right thing, even if it gets her in trouble with the queen, who is also her aunt. This was a running theme throughout and I loved how Wren constantly stayed true to herself and her ways. I got very emotional at the end of chapter 28, where Wren reflects on the way she is and how she needs to be seen and cared for.

On the topic of being seen, Wren is a bisexual character. As a bisexual myself, it was refreshing for me to see. Not only is it not a big deal in her world, but she cares for someone of the opposite sex, which usually isn’t the interest for a bisexual character. Sometimes people discredit bisexual people if you don’t end up with the same sex. I am married to a man and am constantly being seen as “choosing a side”. Seeing characters who end up with the opposite sex and not be disowned for it is what we all need more of. I am happy I am properly seen in this novel. I will move on now because this can easily be its own post.

Hal. My broken and misunderstood babe. Saft really crafted this antihero perfectly. Seeing him and Wren grow close was so beautiful to watch. Who can resist enemies to pining to lovers? Not me! They were such a delight to read and I my heart was constantly fluttering and swooning over them!

A terrible fate indeed, to be your prisoner.

I don’t want to spoil too much, but yes this lives up to the hype. The writing is gorgeous and the atmosphere is eerie. This has been marketed as Crimson Peak if it were a young adult novel and I definitely agree!

This was also a buddy read with Victoria, but really she finished immediately and I read a couple weeks later.. I’m sorry Victoria! I had some other deadlines that caused me to pushback my reading, but as soon as I hit ‘publish’ on this review, I am moving into her DMs to scream.

Thank you to Allison Saft for the arc! This title was released March 2, 2021.

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